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Ballot Box Bunny
Ballot Box Bunny is a 1951 Merrie Melodies short directed by Friz Freleng and written by Warren Foster. Plot Yosemite Sam is running for mayor of a small town saying "There's enough fresh air and sunshine in this great country of ours for everybody- and I'll see to it, that you'll get your share!"). Bugs Bunny is underneath the podium drinking carrot juice when Sam makes a pledge to make good on his previous promise to rid the town "of every last rabbit" if elected. Bugs then decides he needs to fight against Sam by running against him for mayor. Bugs proceeds to quickly try and win the townspeople over (including referencing Theodore Roosevelt's famous "I speak softly, but carry a BIG stick!" quote). However, Sam, declaring that he speaks loud and carries "a bigger stick, and I use it too!" has more than a few tricks up his sleeve. He steals Bugs' cigar stand, sends a boxful of army ants to steal all of Bugs' food, and rigs explosives (in, for instance, a piano and by the front door of Bugs' campaign office), all of which backfire on him. A campaign slogan seen on a pro-Bugs banner says that the candidate is "Loyal, Lovable, Literate." (Bugs switches his "SMELLO" cigars with five-cent ATOM Explosive Cigars {"You Will Get A BANG Out Of This"}, hides a dynamite stick in a watermelon, pretends that a pretty girl called Emma who loves Sam is at his door, and misplays the piano tune on purpose to infuriate Sam, who plays it right and falls for his trap for the fourth time.) In the end, because they were too busy fighting with each other, they don't notice until it is too late that the election has been won by a surprise candidate. The truth of the matter was that the townsfolk didn't actually want a "mayor", they wanted a literal "dark horse" type of candidate: a chestnut-colored mare! The two then play a game of Russian Roulette. Bugs shoots himself, but misses and Sam get shot in the head, leaving Sam angry and saying "I hate that rabbit!" (see "Censorship" note below for more information about the ending). Gallery Notes * Most of this cartoon was used in the TV special, Bugs Bunny: All American Hero. * The "Believe Me If All Those Endearing Young Charms" Exploding Piano Gag would later be reused in "Show Biz Bugs" (1957) and "Rushing Roulette" (1965). * The "dark horse" election as the new mayor is a pun joke; The term of "dark horse" refers to one who receives unexpected support as a candidate for the nomination in a political convention. * Unlike most cartoons, Bugs drinks carrot juice instead of munching on a carrot. Goofs When Bugs plays two distinctly different sour notes each time, he is striking the exact same key. Censorship *On the syndicated Merrie Melodies Show, FOX, ABC, and The WB the entire ending scene where Bugs and Sam play Russian Roulette after both losing the mayoral race to a literal "dark horse" is deleted with a fake iris-out. http://www.intanibase.com/gac/looneytunes/censored-b.aspx *Cartoon Network and Boomerang originally aired the short with the ending cut the same way as for The Merrie Melodies Show, FOX, ABC, and The WB. As of 2011, the short has been shown uncut on both Cartoon Network and Boomerang. ** It should be noted that the pre-2011 censored version that aired on Cartoon Network and Boomerang is a horribly faded unrestored print from the Golden Jubilee tapes which has been time-compressed to PAL speed, while the post-2011 uncensored version is the restored version seen on Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1 played at its original NTSC speed. Various European CN/Boomerang stations would air this short uncensored, either as the aforementioned Golden Jubilee tape print in PAL speed and with high-pitched audio or the 1998 dubbed version (a.k.a. THIS VERSION 1998) print in PAL speed but with normal-pitched audio. *In addition to the ending cut made by The Merrie Melodies Show, FOX, ABC, The WB, and the pre-2011 Cartoon Network and Boomerang, Nickelodeon altered the part in which Bugs plays his "juteybox" (read: Bugs' marching one-man band) and Sam shoots him by having Bugs' marching played in a loop and Sam yelling, "Shut off that juteybox! I can't hear myself a-speechin'" over the looped shot, followed by a cut to Sam saying: "Now, where was I?". This edit makes it seem that Bugs merely stopped because Sam told him to rather than be forced to do it by use of firearms. Gallery Availability *Laserdisc - Bugs Bunny: Winner by a Hare: 14 of Bugs Bunny's Best *VHS - A Salute To Mel Blanc *VHS - From Hare to Eternity *DVD - Looney Tunes Golden Collection: Volume 1, Disc One References External links *Ballot Box Bunny at SuperCartoons.net *Ballot Box Bunny at B99.TV * Category:Merrie Melodies Category:Merrie Melodies shorts Category:Blue Ribbon Category:Blue Ribbon shorts Category:Bugs Bunny shorts Category:Bugs Bunny Category:Yosemite Sam shorts Category:Yosemite Sam Category:Bugs and Sam shorts Category:Directed by Friz Freleng Category:1950s shorts Category:1950s Category:1950s films Category:1951 films Category:1951 shorts Category:1951